Ding-dong, it’s Jeff Bezos

[Bloomberg] [Fully Charged]( From [Bloomberg](   [FOLLOW US [Facebook Share]]([Twitter Share]( [SUBSCRIBE [Subscribe]](  Hi folks, it’s Brad. Last week Amazon.com Inc. bought the Santa Monica, California-based [smart home equipment maker Ring]( for an estimated $1 billion in cash. Though filled with less import than the company’s $13.4 billion acquisition of Whole Foods Market last year, the deal was the second-largest in Amazon’s history. And like all acquisitions, it gives us a rare glimpse into the way Jeff Bezos sees the future. In the short term, Ring gives Amazon another piece in its Alexa puzzle and a leg up in its race against Google and Apple to control homes that will increasingly be filled with connected appliances. Alexa is a nice novelty now, great for serving up the weather, reading the news and hosting the occasional trivia game. But it will be really useful when it’s the hub that lets people use their voice to arm their security systems, open locked doors and flash video of the person who’s ringing the doorbell out front. Google understands this as well; the new [$229 Nest doorbell]( will come with a free Google Home Mini when it starts shipping this spring. Alexa currently works with a host of [third-party smart home products](. But owning Ring’s [varied assortment]( of video doorbells, security cameras and accessories allows Amazon to accelerate their development and make them exclusive to Alexa. (It bought a similar company, [Blink](, last year.) Amazon can also do the typical Amazon thing and lower prices, probably by incorporating the optional subscription plans for keeping recorded video into the soup of benefits that is a Prime membership. There’s also a medium-term benefit to adding Ring. Package theft, a.k.a. “porch pirates,” is a rampant problem in much of the country, one that has required Amazon delivery people to [start emailing customers photographs]( of packages left by the front door, and which, in the past, has forced the company [to restrict]( same-day delivery from neighborhoods with high crime rates. Last year, Amazon introduced a home camera and a service called [Amazon Key](, which automatically opens doors for verified delivery people. Amazon Key works with so-called “smart locks” made by other companies. Ring doesn’t sell door locks just yet, but you can imagine a day when Amazon owns all the components to make such a service work. The implications of the Amazon-Ring deal are really interesting to contemplate when we start thinking farther out. We know Amazon wants to deliver groceries. But leaving bags of kale and cartons of milk outside for hours doesn’t work, and many Amazon Fresh subscribers aren’t crazy about accumulating those [bulky blue totes]( filled with dry ice. When Amazon is behind your home security system, your doorbells and door locks, Amazon workers will be able to walk in, unpack the bags and bring the milk right to the refrigerator. But why stop with groceries? With its endless appetites, Amazon wants to expand in the massive home-services category, fertile ground for companies like Handy Technologies Inc. and Thumbtack Inc. Imagine sitting at school or in your office and being able to buzz in the cable guy or a plumber after verifying they are who they say they are with live video on your phone. Or we can go even further: The Amazon front door and security system could one day open for your trusted housekeeper, dog-walker or exterminator, and no one else. To keep growing at 30 percent a year, Amazon has to start selling us services, not just stuff. The Ring acquisition, with its smart doorbells and security cameras, is another step along that path. Rivals should beware: Amazon’s move into smart home devices is going to give all new meaning to the words “lock in.” —[Brad Stone](mailto:bstone12@bloomberg.net)  And here’s what you need to know in global technology news The cold war between Amazon and Google got hotter. Speaking of Amazon and Nest, Amazon [won’t stock]( Nest’s newer products. We’ve written in this space before about how [the feud is hurting customers](.  The EU prepares a tech tax. The European Union is getting ready to [propose taxing]( the European revenue of the tech giants, which are known for creatively minimizing their tax bills on the continent.  Silicon Valley venture capitalists learned some things in Cleveland—and other Midwestern cities, in a “[Comeback Cities Tour](” organized in part by Bloomberg’s VC firm, Bloomberg Beta, and Ohio Representative Tim Ryan.  Chinese VCs and entrepreneurs are targeting Latin America. There are 600 million people and a somewhat [more open playing field]( for companies like bike-sharing startup Ofo and phone maker Transsion.   Sponsored content by LED EQ - Aerospace For more than 50 years, innovation, investment and infrastructure have helped establish Louisiana as a national leader in aerospace manufacturing. [Learn how]( Louisiana continues to soar to new heights.   You received this message because you are subscribed to the Bloomberg Technology newsletter Fully Charged. 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